New pizza concept has local fired up

Sunday

Mar 31, 2013 at 12:01 AM

CLAYTON PARKWORD ON THE STREET

As the owner and/or investor in nearly 30 restaurants, including the Stonewood Grill & Tavern chain, L. Gale Lemerand figures he knows a thing or two about eating out. And with pizza on his list of favorite foods, Lemerand knew he had to check out for himself a new "fast casual" pizzeria chain in Texas he read about that was just named Restaurant News' "Hot Concept of the Year." His Stonewood chain is a past recipient of the trade magazine's award. The Daytona Beach entrepreneur recently flew to the Dallas area where Pie Five Pizza Co.'s parent company, Pizza Inn Holdings Inc., is based. Joining him was one of his business partners, Tim Curtis, president of the Houligan's sports bar chain, and Orlando restaurant consultant Craig Miller. The three men met Pie Five officials and then proceeded to sample the chain's artisan pizzas at a half-dozen of its restaurants. "I was shocked at how good it was," said Lemerand. "Best pizza I've ever eaten." Putting his money where his mouth is, Lemerand bought the franchise rights to open at least 10 Pie Five restaurants in Central Florida. He said he expects to open his first Pie Five restaurant later this year in either Daytona Beach or Ormond Beach and is in talks with the landlords of two prospective sites. The 9- 1/2-to-10-inch pizzas can be customized to the customer's liking and are ready to eat within five minutes of the order being placed. Pie Five offers "four different kinds of crusts, four to five different sauces and you can load your pizza with as much meats and vegetables as you want" — all for just $6.78, Lemerand said. "This is especially exciting," he said, adding that he considers it "a ground-floor opportunity" to get in on a restaurant chain he believes has the potential to become huge. "I think this will be the Subway of the pizza business," he said.

NO PLANS TO RETIRE

Lemerand, who celebrates his 79th birthday in May, said he has no plans on retiring anytime soon and that he remains on the lookout for promising new business ventures. In addition to his many restaurants, which include Peach Valley Cafes, The Dish, Ormond Beach Wine Company and the new SW Grill at Sunset Harbor, Lemerand also is a major investor in both Ormond Beach-based medical products maker Command Medical and Ormond Beach-based Allstar Building Materials, and a significant shareholder in Southern Title. "I'm in good health, knock on wood," he said.

BACK FROM CHINA

Rebecca DeLorenzo, president of the Flagler County Chamber of Commerce & Affiliates, and her husband, Jason, vice president of government affairs for the Flagler Home Builders Association, recently celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary by taking a trip to China. The couple visited Beijing and Shanghai as part of a tour organized by the American Chamber of Commerce Executives, of which Rebecca DeLorenzo is a member.